


A Snow-Covered Promise

by Nohr



Category: Rune Factory (Video Games), Rune Factory 4
Genre: Christmas, Cute, F/M, Fluff, Happy Ending, Snow, Winter
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-30
Updated: 2014-12-30
Packaged: 2018-03-04 07:56:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,995
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3017300
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nohr/pseuds/Nohr
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A fluffy, winter-themed romance between Frey and Dylas.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Snow-Covered Promise

**Author's Note:**

> *Contains very mild spoilers concerning the Guardians and Ventuswill at the end of the second story arc*

“Come on, Dylas!”

“It’s fun!”

“Get over here, Horseface!”

Frost delicately decorated every inch of Selphia’s town square. Icicles hung from the castle’s architecture and the ground was an ivory display of the season’s winter. Dylas stood in silence and watched nearly a dozen young adults hurl snowballs at each other. He sighed. Every single year they would do it, and every single year he refused. He had other things to do. He could fish, he could work, but he’d be damned if he wasted a season participating in some ridiculous snowball fight.

His mind wandered. He had been dating Frey for quite some time now, and he knew she wanted him to participate more than anyone. He may have entertained the idea had it not become a battle of the sexes. When Frey had arrived, the ladies immediately recruited her and it was quickly turned into a competition for a moment or gender superiority every year. He knew it was simply for fun, but he had trouble understanding why they made the time commitment.

This year was important because they had tied the score again. The ladies had renewed vigor with their increase in numbers, and the boys felt that alone was reason enough for Dylas to lower his guard and join them. Not a chance.

Dylas kept walking, taking an exaggerated turn to avoid being caught in the line of fire. Frey looked down at the snowball in her hands and, with an audible _crunch,_ she pressed it against a large snow bank the ladies hid behind.

“I need to take a break,” she breathed, peeling the gloves off her hands.

Amber lowered her eyebrows, “But you’re always taking a break!”

Amber wasn’t wrong. Frey _was_ always taking breaks for one reason or another. She was arguably the busiest young woman around. She was obligated to not only run the town but also to protect it. It was her duty to make sure everyone felt not only safe but also happy. Dylas knew what it meant to sacrifice one’s self for the sake of everyone else. It was difficult to swallow at first, but somehow he knew it was what he was destined to do. He imagined Frey must have felt similarly when she was asked to become Selphia’s princess.

Footsteps quickly approached, and he glanced back to see Frey grab his hand. His eyes widened.

“Your hands are freezing!”

Dylas had been dating Frey for a while now, and, much to everyone’s surprise, he didn’t mind the idea of being relatively open about it. They went on dates, they held hands, and they even kissed in public regularly. Her presence had an effect on everyone.

“I know. That’s why I always have to take breaks; my gloves don’t work as well in the snow as everyone else’s,” she smiled and added, “But I wanted to see you anyway.”

Dylas nodded and glanced up at the restaurant in front of them.

“I have to get back to work, though.”

Frey sighed, “You’re working a lot lately, aren’t you?”

His heart pounded as he nodded again. It was hard to see her that way without being able to justify his actions. Winter was the season of downtime for farming, but that was certainly not the case at the restaurant. People often took refuge inside Porcoline’s during the cold weather, and serving hot dishes required a lot of care. Now wasn’t the time for him to slack off. He glanced at the damp gloves hanging from Frey’s pocket and headed inside.

 

The days kept rhythmically passing by. Dylas passed through the town square during his break every day to see Frey. Today, though, no one was crouching behind the snow banks. No one was crying with laughter, and no one was begging him to join. He made his way into the castle.

“Merry Christmas, Dylas!”

Dylas looked up to see a magnificent dragon before him. The bright rays of winter light shined down through the ceiling and reflected off her pale emerald scales. His expression loosened as a smile formed on his lips. This was Ventuswill’s first Christmas back home.

“What’s with that look on your face? I demand respect; I am a god!”

Her shrill voice echoed against the stone walls, and he shook his head calmly in response.

“I’m just glad you’re back.”

Her eyes widened and she slowly let out a breath. Dylas knew she was happy to be back as well; she just didn’t like to show it. He knew she still hadn’t fully forgiven herself for what she did to him and the others. The way she shut him out was so _cold_. It was hard to believe she could even consider destroying his memories of their time together after all they had been through. He hid the pain just as well as she did. He hid the fear even better than she could.

“I brought you a little Christmas present from the restaurant.”

He reached carefully into a bag and pulled out a covered plate containing warm, soft pancakes. Her eyes lit up as she felt herself gasp and quickly cleared her throat.

“Thanks, Dylas,” she said, doing her best to contain herself. Though she was now more open with the townsfolk than she was previously, it was still difficult for her to let her not-so-godly emotions show. A large, reptilian smile spread across her face as she took the plate from his hands.

After a few extended moments of light-hearted discussion, Dylas made his way towards Frey’s room. He knocked against the stone archway and called out quietly.

“Frey? Can I come in?”

He stepped in to see Frey sitting on her bed dressed in her pale blue nightgown. His smile faded as he stepped forward and saw a look of melancholy on her face.

“Is something wrong?”

She shook her head in response and looked up towards him. His purple locks were speckled with damp, white flakes of snow. She stood up and brushed some of them away. A smile formed on her lips as he did his best not to instinctively recoil.

“I guess I’ve just missed you lately.”

Dylas felt his heart sink. He hadn’t realized just how much his absence had been affecting her. He cared for her deeply, but it was difficult to truly understand how it felt from her perspective. He was sure it must have felt like he was shutting her out the way he did to everyone: without an ounce of hesitation or consideration. Maybe he was.

He pressed his lips to hers. It wasn’t his intention to make her worry. That wasn’t his job. His duty was to protect her the way she protected the entire town every single day. While she was fighting monsters, he was supposed to be fighting off anything that could make her feel insecure. When she was spending the night in foreign, unsafe territory, he wanted to be home making sure she had a bed and a warm meal to come back to. When she was out risking her life, he wanted to be by her side helping to keep her safe. He wanted to spend the rest of his life with her.

“I’m sorry, Frey. I promise I’ll be around more often; Porcoline even gave me this week off for working so hard through the holiday rush.”

She nodded. He hugged her tightly and pressed a kiss to the top of her head; he never wanted her to feel that way again.

“Here, how about I let you have one of your presents early?”

Her eyes lit up as he handed her a small package. She pulled on the ribbon and revealed a pair of luxurious white gloves. She grinned and quickly slipped them on; they fit perfectly.

“Your gloves were always getting wet,” Dylas held her hands, “So I thought you might need some thicker ones that are more suitable for winter.”

She kissed him.

“Thank you, Dylas. They’re exactly what I needed! And just in time, too.”

Dylas raised an eyebrow.

“What do you mean? Isn’t the snowball fight over? I didn’t see anyone outside.”

Frey glanced towards the clock on her desk and gasped.

“Today’s the last day, and the score is tied. On Christmas day, we always have a shorter game. It’s like sudden death- whichever team lands a hit first wins. I hope they didn’t start without me!”

Dylas watched as Frey pulled a jacket over her shoulders and left the castle. He hadn’t even gotten the chance to mention they’d be exchanging their most important gifts later tonight. He shrugged it off and stepped out behind her.

“Ah! There you are, Frey,” Margaret waved her over and looked towards Dylas.

“Dylas, are you finally going to join the game? Now’s the time more than ever; it’s the final day,” Leon smirked.

“We could really use the extra help,” Kiel added, beaming.

He sighed and looked towards Frey. There was no way out of this one.

“Alright, fine.”

The boys cheered as Dylas joined them behind a mound of snow that, while larger than the girls’, was clearly very precarious. He took a few steps back from it to be safe.

As soon as everyone was in position, Frey smiled at him.

“Why don’t you count us off, Dylas?”

He grunted as his teammates cheered loudly again. He knew this meant he would be obligated to join every year, but it was different now. Now that he was here, he knew he wasn’t obligated to do anything. He wanted this all along.

“Alright, is everyone ready?”

He crouched down with the rest of the team, preparing to pack together snowballs as quickly as possible.

“Three… two… one… go!”

Everyone dove towards the ground and grabbed handfuls of snow. They quickly ducked behind their barriers and peeked out at their competition. The last day was always different from the rest of the game. Rather than throwing as many snowballs as possible, they only needed to get one shot in. Everyone had to stay on their toes.

As suddenly as the game had begun, a high pitched sound pierced the silence. Everyone glanced towards the castle entrance as Ventuswill spoke.

“Did I hear Dylas join the game?”

Her voice rang out and echoed through the castle walls as it always did when she got excited. Frey smiled and returned her focus to the game, but she noticed something peculiar. As Forte stood up, snowball in hand, Frey stopped her.

“What are you waiting for, Frey?”

Dylas heard snow shifting nearby. He looked around, but he didn’t see anyone moving.

“Frey, what are you-“

As he spoke, a large, heavy mound of snow fell from the heavens and buried the young men under its weight. A loud, feminine laugh made its way from inside the castle that caused more snow to slide from the roof of the castle onto the unfortunate group of boys.

Dylas emerged from the top of the mound, his face pink with embarrassment.

“There’s no way that counts! Just because Venti’s a girl, doesn’t mean you win!”

A snowball smacked him in the face, and cheers erupted from the other side of the town square.

“I got him, Venti!”

 

With that, the ladies of the town held Frey close and celebrated. The men agreed to treat them to dinner at Porcoline’s that night, and the holiday was merry. Dylas leaned back against a mound of snow and traced his finger around the small, square box in his pocket. His hard work had paid off, and he was finally able to afford something that Frey would be proud to wear. He wanted every year to be like this. His eyes shone brightly whenever she looked at him, and his heart still pounded at the thought of being with her. He planned to spend this holiday and every holiday to come with Frey and the entire town of Selphia. 

 


End file.
